Malcolm Turnbull embraces the new Parliament having already lost his first battle as a Prime Minister elected in his own right, with his call for a same-sex marriage plebiscite falling on deaf ears.

Enabling legislation for the plebiscite looks doomed before it is even tabled, following the decision by the Nick Xenophon Team to join with the Greens and block it in the Senate.

Independent Senator Derryn Hinch also confirmed his opposition to the plebiscite.

And while Labor has not yet officially declared its hand, Opposition Leader Bill Shorten made his view clear to his shadow ministry on Monday.

“There are many problems with the plebiscite,” he said.

“Not the least of which is that Mr Turnbull has been vetoed from even using the words ‘marriage equality’ in the plebiscite by his own right wing.

“The quickest path to resolving this issue would be a vote in the Parliament, and that’s what we will be seeking to do in coming days and weeks.”

Inside the Coalition party room Mr Turnbull was congratulated for his stance by conservative MP Andrew Hastie.

But it is inside Parliament where the Prime Minister appears defeated on the issue even before doors have opened.

Regardless of what happens in the House of Representatives, the government will not have enough votes in the Senate to pass the enabling legislation.

Future of gay marriage in the balance

That also means, however, that the push for gay marriage could suffer a body blow.

The future of same sex-marriage hangs in the balance. Photo: AAP

Cabinet Minister Simon Birmingham, who supports gay marriage, insisted the Prime Minister would not put the issue to a vote in Parliament if the plebiscite enabling legislation fails.

Even one of the Liberals’ strongest advocates for same-sex marriage, backbencher Warren Entsch, conceded that if the plebiscite was blocked the issue would be dead until the next election.

When Governor-General Sir Peter Cosgrove officially opens the 45th Parliament on Tuesday, he will be firing the starter’s gun on what is certain to be one of the hardest fought terms of government.

The next three years – if the term lasts that long – will be akin to a blood sport and same-sex marriage is just the tip of the iceberg.

Both sides of Parliament are off the starters’ blocks, each with the singular aim of setting the political agenda – for this week, this year, this term.

The budget battle

The Prime Minister has made it clear that fixing the budget is his business.

His focus this week will be on getting the government’s omnibus of budget savings bill through the Parliament.

Australians can expect to hear the term “budget repair” far beyond this opening session of Parliament.

Mr Turnbull told his party room that budget repair was a “fundamental moral challenge” facing the Parliament.

“How long are we prepared as a nation, as a generation, to load more and more debt onto the shoulders of our children and grandchildren?” the Prime Minister asked.

“How long are we prepared to live beyond our means, to live effectively on the credit card of the generations that come after us?
Malcolm Turnbull tells the Coalition party room

“We have a task and this parliament has a task.”

A 25-point plan to fix the budget, outlined by Mr Turnbull, was panned by the Opposition as little more than a rehash of his predecessor Tony Abbott’s plan.

Labor had, however, already agreed to some of the components of the omnibus bill.

That is no guarantee it will be voting for the legislation.

Among the first pieces of legislation to be introduced to the new Parliament will be the industrial relations bills that triggered the double dissolution election – the Australian Building and Constriction Commission and the Registered Organisations bills.

Labor will oppose both, again.

Opposition looks to set the agenda

The Opposition will seek to set the Parliamentary agenda. Photo: AAP

For its part, the Opposition will seek to set the agenda with the aim of positioning itself as a government in waiting.

Labor will outline clear points of difference from the government, through continued pushes to enshrine Medicare in legislation, protect penalty rates, and hold an inquiry into the banking sector.

Numerous parliamentary enquiries that will be a significant feature of this Parliament.

With a slim majority of one in the House of Representatives and a more difficult Senate than it had in the last Parliament, the government can expect ongoing inquiries into banking, the Census, offshore detention, milk prices and the dairy industry, the insurance sector, aged care, workplace deaths, military suicide, the Racial Discrimination Act, family law and much more.

The 45th Parliament begins now and there are only seven sitting weeks left this calendar year.

Chris Johnson is a Walkley Award-winning journalist who has spent the past decade working in the Canberra Press Gallery, most recently as the bureau chief for Fairfax Media. He is now a Political Correspondent for The New Daily.